Orange County Prices Up Slightly, Sales Down, Buyers Have Many More Choices
The common sentiment in Orange County is that the investors have by and large left the market. A couple of years ago, 1 in 4 buyers was an investor/speculator, according to this article.
"We're getting back to really doing real estate," Scibelli said. "The quick dollar, the quick money, those days are gone."
My initial observation was that 1/4 speculative buyers doesn't seem that egregious, especially considering cities such as Miami, where estimates have placed the percentage of speculative buyers at close to 50%.
Regardless, despite the speculator departures, Orange County real estate sales are nearly on a pace to match 2003, the third-busiest year on record.